海角大神

We used to like traveling. Now, it鈥檚 a drag.

鈥淣o, we don鈥檛 want to go through your new x-ray machine,鈥� we told the TSA guard.

鈥淲hassa matter? It鈥檚 safe鈥︹�� she replied.

鈥淗ow do you know that?鈥�

鈥淭he government said it was safe.鈥�

鈥淒o you believe everything the government tells you?鈥�

鈥淗eh鈥�heh鈥� Okay鈥︹�� then, turning to no one in particular鈥� 鈥淩EFUSAL on 11. Male.鈥�

We were out quickly鈥�but the poor old woman behind us had to get up out of her wheelchair鈥�hobble through the x-ray machine鈥�and then they still wanted to feel her up on the other side.

You can鈥檛 be too safe, right?

This has been going on for 10 years. But it is still shocking. No one seriously believes that 85-year-old crippled Lutherans are going to cause mayhem on commercial airliners. But no one seems willing to say so.

You can鈥檛 even ask the question. Because it leads to other questions. Who, actually, is a threat? Probably no one. So, why are we herded鈥�inspected鈥�and pawed鈥�as if the survival of the nation depended on it?

For the money and aggravation, all this security has probably done little to make air-travel any safer. But it鈥檚 done wonders at turning the American population into whipped dogs. They bark on command. When they begin the round-ups, interrogations and deportations鈥�Americans will be ready to get in line鈥�

You鈥檒l see part of the reason why, below鈥�

Recent news brought reports of more new jobs. We suspect that most of the good news was merely misinterpretation of the data. Many people have been looking for work for so long, the feds have stopped counting them. Besides, they routinely adjust jobs upward in winter, to make up for bad weather. So when there isn鈥檛 any bad weather in January, the job numbers go up automatically.

But there鈥檚 another problem.

鈥淢ost of the new jobs being created,鈥� complains Robert Reich, 鈥渁re in the lower-wage sectors of the economy 鈥� hospital orderlies and nursing aides, secretaries and temporary workers, retail and restaurant. Meanwhile, millions of Americans remain working only because they鈥檝e agreed to cuts in wages and benefits. Others are settling for jobs that pay less than the jobs they鈥檝e lost. Entry-level manufacturing jobs are paying half what entry-level manufacturing jobs paid six years ago.鈥�

He continues, in the 海角大神 Science Monitor:

Too bad; Reich misunderstands everything. He thinks Republicans are to blame for wanting to reduce government handouts. Reich believes he can replace real middle-class earnings with a cushier safety net鈥�as if there was no difference between a person who earns a living鈥�and one who begs one鈥�.

鈥�and as if the middle class wouldn鈥檛 have to pay for it.

On the subject of handouts, the Republicans are on slightly more solid ground than Reich and the democrats. They say they will cut them back. At least, those that don鈥檛 go to the voters.

For example, Mitt Romney says he doesn鈥檛 care about the poor; he cares about the middle class. Why? The middle class votes; the poor don鈥檛.

Trouble is, there are more and more people who are slipping from the middle class鈥�to the poor side of town.

Investment Business Daily is on the story:

Our quick-witted Dear Readers are probably already gasping for air. The zombies now are getting more money than wage earners. And millions of those wage earners are zombies themselves, on the government payroll鈥�or the payroll of some industry 鈥� health, education, military 鈥� that depends on federal spending.

That leaves honest working people in a minority. And everybody gets a vote.

How do you think the zombies will vote? To cut back on spending on education? On healthcare? On foreign wars or new weapons? On welfare? On food stamps? On unemployment comp?

No, dear reader, there are some ailments that can鈥檛 be cured鈥�and some problems democracy cannot solve.

Regards,

Bill Bonner
听蹿辞谤 The Daily Reckoning